The Newtown partnership began with Superintendent
Janet Robinson
's visit to Liaocheng last November, but it was officially signed into existence in April by assistant principal Jason Hiruo.

Hiruo and
Martha Parvis
, a social studies teacher, went to Liaocheng on behalf of the school district -- for what Hiruo considers two life-altering weeks.

"It is a positive move for our students to understand other cultures and (that) will contribute later in life," he said.

Since the trip, Hiruo has been working daily, corresponding through a translator with
Chinese Ministry of Education
officials, learning Chinese, and recruiting students, teachers and town residents to take part in the first student visit.

"China is a dominant power -- that's just how it is. There are a lot of things that will influence your success and one part is China," Hiruo told students who gathered in the lecture hall Nov. 25 to learn more about volunteering during the visit.

"There's a whole lot of dialogue that takes place just to get this visit off the ground," he said.

The 14 delegates from China -- two principals, two English teachers and 10 students -- will arrive in the U.S. on Jan. 29 and leave Feb. 7.

"The importance of this January visit is that it is the first visit from our sister school," Robinson said Friday.

By agreement, the Chinese government is paying for the group's flight to the U.S. The host school pays for everything else -- food, lodging and field trips.

The delegation's entire U.S. stay is being planned by volunteers at Newtown High School, who are being overseen by Hiruo. The visitors will stay with host families, two to a household. Two educators will stay with Hiruo and two with Parvis.

The host families are responsible for bringing the delegates to and from the school, feeding them, and making them feel as comfortable as possible while helping them learn about traditional American family structure and responsibilities, including chores.

There will be welcome and farewell ceremonies. An important part of the ceremonies is gift giving. The school plans to give gifts that represent Newtown schools, Newtown, Connecticut and American culture. Students in the culinary program will prepare food and students from the music department will perform.

After the welcome, the visitors will shadow students and teachers at the high school for four full days, including afternoon extracurricular activities, sporting events and practices.

The delegation will also take a historical tour of Newtown, a tour of the school district (
Hawley School
, Reed Intermediate, the middle school, and the central office), a private tour of
Yale University
, a trip to New York City, and possibly a trip to Hartford.

"We don't want to run them ragged, but we want to provide them with the full American student experience," Hiruo said.

He talks to a translator in China daily to prepare for the trip. During the conversations, the 4-2-1 concept almost always comes up. The Chinese believe four grandparents, two parents, and one teacher ensure a student's success.

Some classes in Liaocheng have more than 70 students. Only 10 to 12 percent of students go on to study at the university.

"They are not worried about student-teacher ratio," Hiruo said, "but they can't be because of the nature of their educational system."

The delegates are very interested in the American educational system, which is vastly different. The two English teachers from China will translate for the two principals. All of the students speak English fluently. Hiruo said practically everyone he met in China under age 30 spoke English.

"We have one thing in common: The administration, we don't speak the language," Hiruo said.

He said the cafeteria he saw at Liaocheng Middle School No. 3 was on two floors -- one for males and one for females -- and all 1,000 students were served in 20 minutes.

Hiruo said Newtown is hoping to send a delegation of from four to six students and one or two teachers to Liaocheng in fall 2009. "I think to have a successful program ,you have to push and persist (with) this every year."

Hiruo said the
Newtown Board of Education
supports his initiatives, because the international partnership will help it develop a Chinese language and culture program to prepare Newtown graduates to work in the global economy. He said more than 1.3 billion people in the world speak Chinese.

"We want to give (our visitors) a great American cultural experience. I think that they'll leave here and the excitement of telling everybody about their experiences will rejuvenate the excitement at all levels."

Contact Melissa Bruen

at mbruen@newstimes.com

or (203) 731-3350.

Chinese to visit Newtown WHO -- 10 students, two English teachers and two principals FROM --Liaocheng Middle School No. 3 in Shandong, China WHEN -- Jan. 29 to Feb. 7